Here's a photo from the Wedding I djed last new years eve. This was the dance floor at the stroke of midnight. As a bonus I busted out the bubble machine. Tonights gig is downtown. Doing the DJing and a Photo Booth rental. Should be a great time. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE AND MAKE IT A GREAT 2010!

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

Okay... I admit that as a DJ the chicken dance is silly. It is one of those choices we give our couples before their reception (to have or not to have). We still get about 25% of our clients who request that we do the chicken dance at thier parties. I love it when they request it because I know it's going to get people involved and help break the ice. In this photo the Bride and Groom (who asked me to play the chicken dance)are in the middle of the circle whooping it up.
WHAT DO YOU THINK? As far as I'm concerned I say LONG LIVE THE CHICKEN DANCE!

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I will be bloggin' quite a bit about the upcoming Bridal Show. We spend so much time and money getting ready for it and it really is a great chance for engaged couples to get ideas, save money, and win FREE STUFF. This years show will be at the Mid America Center in Council Bluffs on January 10th. This is a photo of just one of the vendor rooms from last years show.
For show info go to:
www.omahabridalnetwork.com

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

The annual Bridal Showcase will be held at the MAC in Council Bluffs on January 10th. This is the largest Bridal Show of the year and will have the more vendors than any other show. In addition this bridal show hands down has the best produced fashion show with tons of prizes to give away.
Last year during the show I hosted the Cake Eating Contest in the Groom Room. It was a blast and watching 6 guys devour an entire cake in just minutes was hilarious.
If your getting married plan on attending the show on the 10th. For more information go to www.omahabridalnetwork.com

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

In lieu of the traditional cake the Bride and Groom from this reception I DJed had random cake tables set up throughout the venue. There were 9 of these tables with cakes set up at random locations. As the guests finished dinner they were able to go to any of these cake stations to help themselves. This made the serving of the cake a lot easier and saved a lot of time. This was a great idea and each cake was a different flavor. Expensive I'm sure but ultimately a cool idea.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

Recently I released my book "Wedding Reception Secrets Revealed". In that book I cover all kinds of things to make a Wedding Reception everything it should be. Most of the Brides I have worked with over the last 23 years have all had a few things in common including wanting guests to have fun and to not leave the party early. A big factor in hitting these goals is the venue that is chosen for the reception. In my blog I have covered some outstanding facilities. Check past posts for excellent venues and I will have more to come.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com
www.weddingreceptionsecretsrevealed.com

O.K.... So these young ladies at my last Wedding Reception wanted to do a train using connecting Balloon Hats. So after lots of hot air and plenty of twists I was able come up with this. Not the most pretty balloon hat but it did the trick.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I would like to thank the Metropolitan Hospitality Association for hiring me to DJ their annual December get together. It was good to see everyone again and I've got to tell you that this was the first time I had DJed in the Quest Centers Club Lounge. It was very cool and would be a great place for anyone looking to have a holiday party.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I know I have been posting a lot of location shots in my blog lately and that is because there are so many wonderful reception facilities in Omaha and Council Bluffs. This is a shot I took just after I set up for a Wedding Reception at Erin Court. Full catering and bar are offered. I always seem to have rockin' gigs whenever I'm at Erin Court.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I did a gig last night at the Quest Center's Club Lounge for the Hospitality Association and low and behold Karl was working. Karl has been one of those bartenders that I have worked with at various gigs over the last 20 years. It's always nice to go to a gig and see a familiar face and Karl and I always have fun when we do gigs together. Merry Christmas Karl and to everyone at the Quest Center Club Lounge.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

We do a ton of Wedding Receptions at the Club Convention Center in Papillion. I stopped by one night to check our one of my best DJs in action. This is a photo of David Nihsen with a full dance floor to brag about. Dave is personable and always goes above and beyond for the Bandstand clients. Way to pack the floor Dave!

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

Did this wedding at the Mid America Center and there were a ton of groomsmen. They all went crazy half way throught the night and decided to take off their shirts and sport their vests only. They danced around the Bride to the song Macho Man. It was a riot and the guests ate it up.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

It is time to play "GUESS THE LOCATION". Last night I DJed a company party here in Omaha. This was the view from the room we were dancing in. It was the perfect setting for a holiday party. The snowfall lasted all night and it was just beautiful to watch. By looking at this picture can you guess where this event was held?

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

Ahhh... the traditional removal of the garter. It's always fun when you've got a huge crowd getting into it. The willingness for the crowd to get involved always makes for a great night for the DJ. This photo was taken as the groom was about to remove the garter. I really like the little girl who is walking up to find out excactly what is going on.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

A nice all inclusive facility is the Millard Plaza Ballroom. I DJ in there quite a bit and for DJ's we can be easily spoiled by the convienent load in. You can see the load in door right behind my DJ table. Could it be any easier??? The ballroom is elegant and has a huge dancing area for the guests. In my book www.weddingreceptionsecretsrevealed.com I talk about the importance of bar placement and the Millard Plaza Ballroom is one of those facilites in which the bar is perfectly located right in the center of the action. Great facility all around for any event.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I did a reception at 1316 Jones and the Bride and Groom took over the microphones and sang a duet together. It was so much fun that I actually can't remember the song they were singing. Anyway it was a blast and they were both great singers.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

The cool thing about the groom cake is that you can have some fun with it. In my 22 years of being a wedding DJ i've seen some very creative stuff. If you looked at the history of this blog you will see that I often post groom cake photos. Here is one that I found to be very cool. A cake in the shape of an acoustic guitar.
Although it's hard to tell in the photo the guitar actually had strings on it.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I was DJing a wedding reception at the Durham Western Heritage Museum when suddenly this groomsman came over to my DJ table and asked me if he could use the microphone to sing a song. Not that I ever have a problem handing over the mic to whoever wants to use it but on this particular night the Bride wanted me to keep the mic away from people because she though it might get out of hand. Knowing this guy could snap me in half like a twig I quickly excused myself and ran to the Bride like a scared puppy. Told her this guy wanted to sing and she said sure no problem. Thank Goodness... Actually the guy was a pretty good singer and everyone loved him.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

You almost never see it anymore but a traditional way to do the dollar dance was to pin the money to the Bride and Groom. On a recent Rececption I DJed the Bride and Groom went old school and had the money pinned on them. The only down side is that you will probably be putting some nasty holes in your wedding dress. It was cool to see though.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

One of my favorite places to DJ at was the Mr C's outdoor garden. Before they closed I had DJed many Wedding Receptions there. This photo was taken from the outdoor balcony looking down at my DJ system set up in front of the dancing area. I really miss Mr. C's and I'm glad I had the chance to DJ as many Wedding Receptions there that I did.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

In this photo I had just set up for a wedding reception and decided to snap this photo. The reception facility (Legacy Hall) was very clean, spacious and has a great layout for a wedding reception. This venue is located on 90th and Military.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

When your daughter gets married and you have spent your life savings for her party sometimes the only thing left to do at the reception is to have a few drinks and then leap up onto a table and dance. It's a good lesson for us all. When life seems overwhelming sometimes you've just got to bring on the boogie.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I am getting very excited for the next Bridal Show. It will be at the Mid America Center on January 3rd, 2010 from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. I will be the MC for the event for the 5th year in a row and I can't wait. If you are planning a wedding this is the show you won't want to miss. Plan on attending the Bridal Showcase on January 3rd, 2010.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

It's always cool when a couple has their wedding ceremony at the same place as the reception. The big benefit is that the guests don't have to drive to two separate locations the day of the wedding. In addition there are no long gaps in between the ceremony and reception. This helps with momentum. You can also have the DJ play your ceremony music. This picture is of a Wedding/Reception that I DJed at the Club Convention Center here in Omaha.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

There has always been a place in my heart for the youngsters at the Wedding Reception I DJ. During dinner, dancing or whenever I love to take some time to do something special for the kids. The fact is that there just isn't much for kids to do at Wedding Receptions and I am happy to provide them with some entertainment.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I have been blessed over the 2009 Wedding season to have been working for some wonderful Brides and Grooms. Friday nights reception was no exception. Adam & Nicole were wonderful and so were their family and friends. Ceremony and reception were both held at the Sokol Auditorium and this is a photo of Adam & Nicole during the Bride and Groom dance.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

Whenever you are having a party and your expectations are for people to dance the night away it helps when you put your entertainment in the center of the action. In other words you should never jam your DJ in the corner and then expect people to be excited about dancing all night. I took this picture at my last reception of the set up. As the DJ I was right in front of the dance floor which was located right smack in the center of the room. This encourages participation and dancing and helps the DJ to facilitate all the activities. By the way, once the dancing got underway this reception rocked. Thanks Leanna and Ray for a great night.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

Over the years I have learned that as a DJ you have to ease into getting the dance started. I always start the dance at every reception by dedicating the first song of the night to the Bride, Groom, and all the happy couples in attendance. It always packs the floor. This is how to get em' out there. Starting off the dance with a fast song rarely works. This was the dance floor on the first song from my gig last Saturday at the Patriots Club at Offutt.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

After my reception Saturday night I walked out to see this... The Brides car had been T-Peed and to make things even more messy it rained a little bit too. I always love seeing the cars decorated and athough some Brides and Grooms find it annoying I do feel it's all part of the rite of passage. It must be done!

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I DJed a reception on Saturday night and had never met the Bride and Groom. Thier names were Leanna and Ray. The whole theme of the reception was Salt and Pepper shakers. They had salt and pepper shakers on every table as the centerpieces and even on the grooms cake that you see here. I took this picture before anyone had arrived at the reception. As I took this photo I was stumped as to what the Salt n' Pepper theme was all about. I did eventually find out but I want to know what your guesses would have been. Any thoughts?

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

Every year I DJ the party for the employees of the Hilton Hotel Downtown. This years party was an absolute riot. In this photo some of the upper management including the GM we up on the stage doing a crazy dance routine. I've got to tell you that the Hilton really knows how to take care of their employees. The give away some pretty cool stuff at their parties.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com
www.bandstandmusic.blogspot.com

I've got to tell you that I am having a blast with these photo booth rentals. Last weekend we had 2 out including one at Anthony's Steak House and the other pictured here at the Livestock Exchange Building. WOW! Great participation and I want to thank our fun clients for their business last weekend.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

I would like to take a moment to give props to one of my competitors / mentors. This is a photo of Johnny O. John is one of the nicest guys you will ever meet. He is what I like to refer to as the Godfather of all Mobile DJ's in Omaha. John was the first in Omaha to start this Mobile Wedding DJ thing back in the early 70's and I am proud to call him a friend. I was working one of our Photo Booth rentals on Saturday and John just happened to be the DJ for the reception. It was great seeing him again and he is still as good as ever. Thanks John for plowing the road for all of us Mobile DJ's out there. I also want to thank you for playing Stairway to Heaven for me back in 1985. You DJed one of my dances when I was in Junior High.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Bandstand Music is currently working on it's You Tube Channel. Everything should be up and running in just another day or two. Lot's of Videos on the way. Stay tuned...

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

You know we've been renting the Bandstand Music photo booth like crazy. One of our biggest selling points is that compared to our competitors who can fit 1 or 2 people in their photo booths we say we can fit up to 7 comfortably. Last week we snapped this photo of 11 people fitting in our photo booth. WOW! As they exited it was like watching the old 15 clowns piling out of the little car gag.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

So after a 7 hour reception the Bride and Groom were ready to leave the reception for some R & R. Problem was that it took them 10 minutes to get into their car. The best man and a few of the groomsman we nuts with a jumbo roll of plastic wrap.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Hi everyone! If thinking of putting together your own video slide show and projecting it at your party or wedding please take my advice. If you produce these videos yourself then TEST TEST TEST everything beforehand. I can't tell you how many of my clients who have put together their own shows have had nothing but trouble with them the night of their party. There are a lot of reasons why but unfortunately I don't have time to cover them all right now but contact me anytime if you have questions. This photo shows people scrambling to get the video to play at one of my receptions I DJed. The video never played because they did not have the proper cable to connect the laptop to the projector.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

We have been experimenting lately with our new Kiosk version of our De Luxe Photo Booth. This unit is cheaper to rent for our customers and comes with everything our De Luxe Photo Booth comes with except for the privacy surround. This unit is not yet available for rent but will be very soon.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Man... what an awesome Bride and Groom from last Saturday. I snapped this photo during the cake cutting. Bride was absolutely beautiful and the groom a perfect gentleman. Bandstand Music DJed 13 wedding reception last Saturday as well as the Fremont Homecoming.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

One of the first things I always do when I arrive at a wedding is checkout the groom's cake. Some are very creative. I remember a wedding from two years ago when the groom cake was in the shape of a Nintendo Game Cube. It was perfect down to the last detail. I wished I had gotten a picture of that. This is the cake from the wedding I DJed last Saturday. "Go Panthers"

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Just this week we shot some video footage for the Photo Booth video demo. It is in the editing stages now and should be ready to post on my website by the middle of the week. Had a ton of fun shooting the video and I hope it will be helpful for my customers. Tons of Weddings to DJ this weekend. I personally will be at the Oak Hills CC to DJ a reception and I'll post pictures on Monday. Have a great weekend!

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Last weekend was another successful photo booth rental weekend. Tons of participation during the wedding reception in Omaha. This is a photo of some of the pages guests were signing as we put the scrapbook together. Great fun!

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Wow, Jim was awesome! I had such a blast and that seems to be the consensus. (As if someone would tell me if they didn't...LOL) The mansion as well was very complimentary to Jim in how he got it all set up and played throughout the night in such... a small space so comfortably. Thank you so much for all of your help to get that set up! There are some great pics on my page of us dancing fools that night, feel free to copy any of them for your page if you like. :) I think there is a picture of the grooms cake too...in case you are curious!

Way to go Jim...

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Bandstand Music DJ Jim Morrison whipped it up at the Renaissance Mansion last Friday night for a friend of mines Wedding Reception. Looks like things were rockin'. Love DJing at the Renaissance. It's a beautiful historical home and always proves to be a unique venue for any Wedding Reception.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Wedding Reception from last Saturday had an awesome horseshoe shaped Grooms cake. This particular wedding had a huge country theme with all the groomsmen in western style tuxes with cowboy hats. Reception rocked!

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

One of the perks of being a DJ is that sometimes (despite being 39 and covered in freckles) you can still get a pretty girl to pose with you. Actually this lady caught me off gaurd (not that I'm complaining). I was behind my DJ table at a reception when she suddenly grabbed me and had her friend take this picture.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

The Bandstand Photo Booth has been rockin'. Here is a photo from one of the events. Just some people having fun which is what the photo booth is all about.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

The question I often ask my new DJ's is to imagine youself at your first gig and you are behind the DJ table facing a room full of guests. It is now time to start the dance and so my first question to the rookies is "what are you going to do?" Meaning, how are you going to start the dance off. So my question to anyone reading this blog is this: As you look at this picture if you were the DJ what would you do to get the dance kicked off? Remember the bride and groom are counting on you.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

After 9 years of dating, the bride and groom last Saturday finally tied the knot. I took this picture right before the groom removed the garter. I love seeing all the people gathering around and nothing beats seeing the huge smiles on the bride and grooms faces.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com

Well another monster busy weekend in the DJ biz gone by. This is a photo of one of my best DJ's David Nihsen taken during his gig at Karen's Fireside. I want to thank Jeff Lonowski with Affordable Photography for taking this photo and sending it to me.

Steve Bergeron
www.bandstandmusic.com